The Maharishi Institute (MI), that is to be the beneficiary of the arrangement, is the brainchild of Taddy Bletcher of CIDA city campus fame. It effectively twins its consciousness-based education programme with the higher-consciousness executive search methodology of Humanity through this deal. The synergies are manifest.
The vendor-funded empowerment deal sees Humanity's BEE rating improve dramatically from Level 4 to Level 2 - making it one of the highest BEE performers of the credible local search companies.
The fact that the benefits of the BEE shareholding and the entire SED and enterprise development spend of Humanity will be dedicated to graduate education is an example that many others seeking to improve their BEE scores, or just doing what they can to build a better country, will surely emulate.
One can imagine a country where the fruits of BEE policy are directed to credible educational projects, and not simply to the enrichment of those seen to have the right connections. This would be a new way of looking at public-private cooperation.
A joint venture, managed by Humanity, will place MI graduates with private and public sector organisations looking to source high-performing (the undergraduate pass mark at MI is 80%) graduates of colour who have higher-consciousness characteristics. "It's no surprise that Humanity has identified a link between higher-conscious students and higher-conscious business leaders," says Blecher.
The effect of consciousness-based leadership on business success is substantiated in a massive international research study conducted in the US in 2006. In a sample of 486 top business leaders, strong correlations were found between leaders with consciousness characteristics and the success of their businesses.
Humanity's method relies on its ability to assess the CQ (Consciousness Quotient) needs of jobs within its clients and place candidates with matching profiles into these jobs within the context of companies. This happens after the skills and experience profiles are a perfect match already. This high-level matching process ensures that leaders with the appropriate levels of CQ are placed in roles that demand the behaviours they are most likely to exhibit.
Complementary to the Humanity methodology, Maharishi Institute students are educated using consciousness-based education methodology, for example the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique is part of the daily routine. "The results speak for themselves," says Humanity CEO Georgina Barrick. "Independent studies have shown that consciousness-based education students have a 25% increase in pass-rates. They also show significant improvements in speed of cognitive processing, cognitive flexibility, creativity, general intelligence, practical intelligence and field independence, as well as improved self-concept among children from low-income families."
Over the past three years, Humanity has been very successful in selecting superior leadership talent in the private and public sectors. The company's consciousness-based matching methodology has placed the current CEO of one of SA's largest state-owned enterprises as well as a large number of C-level leaders in JSE-listed organisations.
For more information, contact Georgina Barrick.
